President Barack Obama does not deserve a second term, American voters say 49 - 43 percent,
and he is in a statistical dead heat with possible Republican challengers Mitt Romney and Mike
Huckabee, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. President Obama leads
Sarah Palin 48 - 40 percent.

Romney, Huckabee, Palin and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich are bunched
together when Republican voters are asked who they prefer for the GOP's 2012 presidential
nomination, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University survey finds.

Democratic voters say 64 - 27 percent they do not want anyone to challenge President
Obama for their party's nomination in 2012.

"The Democratic base remains squarely behind President Barack Obama when it comes to
his re-election, but his weakness among independent voters at this point makes his 2012 election
prospects uncertain," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling
Institute.

"The demographic splits in the electorate when voters are asked whether the president
deserves a second term is a roadmap for his re-election strategists on how they need to focus
their appeal. Only 39 percent of men, 34 percent of whites, 35 percent of political independents
and 38 percent of those over age 35 think he deserves four more years in the Oval Office."

In trial heats for 2012, former Massachusetts Gov. Romney receives 45 percent to 44
percent for Obama, while the president gets 46 percent to 44 percent for Mr. Huckabee.
Matched against Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a virtual unknown to most voters, the president
leads 45 - 36 percent.

"At this point, former Alaska Gov. Palin runs the worst against President Obama.
Daniels is essentially a generic Republican because of his anonymity to most voters. Obama only
gets 45 percent against him while he gets 48 percent against Ms. Palin," said Brown. "She is very
unpopular among independents and although she recently said she thought she could defeat
Obama, the data does not now necessarily support that assertion."

"Unlike Daniels, who is a political unknown to most Americans, virtually all voters have
formed an opinion about Palin and that opinion is not encouraging for her candidacy."

Ms. Palin is viewed the most negatively by the American people of the possible
Republican candidates in 2012. She is viewed unfavorable by 51 percent of voters and favorably
by 36 percent. Among independents, the key swing voting bloc, she has a negative 54 - 33
percent favorability rating.

"The best thing Obama has going for him when it comes to his re-election may be that at
this point the Republicans don't have a candidate who is both nationally well-known and well-
liked by a majority of voters," said Brown.

From November 8 - 15, Quinnipiac University surveyed 2,424 registered voters
nationwide, live by telephone, with a margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points.

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public
opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and the
nation as a public service and for research.
For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or
follow us on Twitter.

1. (Republicans and Republican Leaners) It is a long way off but I would like to
ask you some questions about the 2012 Presidential election. If the 2012
Republican primary for President were being held today, and the candidates were:
Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Mitch Daniels,
Tim Pawlenty, Haley Barbour, and John Thune for whom would you vote?

2. (Democrats and Democrat Leaners) It is a long way off but I would like to ask
you some questions about the 2012 Presidential election. Would you like to see a
candidate other than Barack Obama run for the Democratic nomination for
President in 2012 or not?

3. Turning to the November 2012 general election for President, if the 2012
election for President were being held today, and the candidates were,
Barack Obama the Democrat and Sarah Palin the Republican for whom would you
vote?